MP visits premature babies at Northwick Park

A MOTHER whose son was born prematurely is trying to raise awareness about cuts to special care baby units.

Rachel Evans’s son Taleisen was born at 27 weeks and weighing just over a pound and a half. He was given a 10-15 per cent chance of survival.

Taleisen was on a ventilator for six weeks and suffered from lung and heart problems and was later transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital for heart surgery.

He spent five months in Northwick Park Hospital and other hospitals, and his mother is now campaigning to keep the vital services which saved his life going.

Mrs Evans, who lives in Pinner Road, Pinner, with her husband David, met MP Gareth Thomas at Northwick Park hospital to show him the neonatal unit after a lobby event on behalf of the charity Bliss.

She said: “We were taken round by a really enthusiastic consultant and I think Gareth really got an impression of how everything works. After meeting Gareth twice to talk about funding and staffing issues faced by neonatal units, it was great that he came to see the local unit for himself.”

The charity recently launched its SOS campaign to try to save threatened special care baby units and nurses, after it emerged one in every three units caring for premature and sick babies in England is making cuts to its nursing workforce through redundancies, freezing vacancies or downgrading nurses.

The campaigner for Bliss said she was pleased Northwick Park Hospital in Watford Road has no plans to cut nursing staff on the ward.

Mr Thomas said: “The work done at neonatal units is hugely important and the commitment of the staff at Northwick Park’s unit was very impressive.

“I will vigorously oppose any efforts to reduce funding for this vital service.”

Taleisen was two in August and is progressing well.

His mother said: “He is really healthy now and every time we go in to see the specialist they are surprised by his progress and say how well he is doing.”